‘But you’re not listening to me,’ said Smith. And, to the acute embarrassment of everybody except Gaunt, he began to blubber. ‘Straight out of the jaws of death,’ he cried piteously, ‘and you ask a chap to go to the study.’

Dikon heard Gaunt give a little cough of laughter before he turned to Mrs Claire and said: ‘We’ll remove ourselves.’

‘Yes, of course,’ said Dikon.

The doorway, however, was blocked by Simon and Mrs Claire, and before they could get out of the way Smith roared out: ‘I don’t want anybody to go. I want witnesses. You stay where you are.’

Gaunt looked good-humouredly from one horrified face to another, and said: ‘Suppose we all sit down.’

Barbara took her uncle fiercely by the arm. ‘Uncle James,’ she whispered, ‘stop him. He mustn’t. Uncle James, please.’

‘By all means let us sit down,’ said Dr Ackrington.

They filed solemnly and ridiculously into the dining-room and, as if they were about to witness a cabaret turn, sat themselves down at the small tables. This manoeuvre appeared to quieten Smith. He took up a strategic position between the tables. With the touch of complacency which must have appeared in the Ancient Mariner when he cornered the wedding guest, he embarked upon his story.

‘It was over at the level crossing,’ he began. ‘I’d been up the Peak with Eru Saul and I don’t mind telling you why. Questing’s been nosing around the Peak and the Maoris don’t like it. We’d seen him drive along the Peak road earlier in the evening. Eru and I reckoned we’d cut along by the bush track to a hideout in the scrub. We didn’t see anything. He must have gone up the other face of the hill if he was there at all. We waited for about an hour and then I got fed up and came down by myself. I hit the railroad about a couple of chains above the level crossing.’

‘By the railroad bridge?’ said Simon.

‘You’re telling me it was by the bridge,’ said Smith with extraordinary violence. ‘I’ll say it was by the bridge. And get this. The 5.15 from Harpoon was just about due. You know what it’s like. The railroad twists in and out of the scrub and round the shoulder of the hill and then comes through a wee tunnel. You can’t see or hear a thing. Before you know what’s happening, she’s on top of you.’

‘She is, too,’ agreed Simon, with an air of supporting Smith against unfair opposition.